January 2024 Round Up

The above picture is from the grounds of the local Armagh Planetarium, where I have enjoyed some walks when weather has allowed. Not that I mind a bit of rain, but we’ve had a couple of storms and going by the amount of fallen trees and branches, walking would not have been advised. The footpaths have been at times like an ice rink, with more fallers than the grand national.

It’s mostly been a time for being indoors, which means more books and screen time. Let’s have a look at what I enjoyed over holiday period (remember that?) and the month of January.

Books

Hard to beat a cracking thriller when it’s cold and wet, so ‘Resurrection Walk’ by Micheal Connelly provided plenty of escapism. It’s a superbly crafted legal/police procedural and the quality never dips. As usual, proper page turner.

Also suitable for the time of year was ‘Madhouse at the end of the earth’ by Julian Sancton. If you were stuck with family over the festive period and feeling a bit of cabin fever, this book would have given you a bit of perspective. Setting out on a three year exploration, The Belgica and the crew get stuck in the ice and are forced to winter in the Antarctica. Madness and illness occur, but it’s also a tale of endurance, inventiveness and dogged survival.

My interests in life are naturally reflected in my reading. ‘Pouring Concrete: A Zen Path to the Kingdom of God’ by Robert Harwood was an ideal post retreat book - brimming with joy and a fascinating personal journey. I’ve also enjoyed the timeless direction of Ramana Maharshi in ‘Be Here Now/and Who am I?’

Screentime

A lot of time on the couch so have been able to catch up with movies. I had the idea that I’d try and watch as many Oscar nominated movies as possible but that’s not going to work out.

Finally got around to ‘Oppenheimer’. Have largely avoided it because of the length (I know, poor reason) and couldn’t go the cinema because I was concerned about the noise. I live close to the picture house and could hear the massive boom every night - that also would have sent my tinnitus mushrooming into the stratosphere. But have to say I enjoyed it, especially the magnetic performance of Cillian Murphy. There’s also a great support cast, with Robert Downey Jr, Florence Pugh, Emily Blunt and Matt Damon to name just a few.

I liked the scale of it, and enjoyed the fact it’s a weighty movie. Murphy does a great job of displaying the inner turmoil he felt (‘Destroyer of worlds’ indeed) and how the planet was now ultimately changed forever. It’ll probably get best movie at the ceremony.

Saltburn

‘Saltburn’ is memorable for three particular scenes, and if you’ve seen it you’ll know what I refer to. Bath. Grave. Dance. It has a great cast with Barry Keoghan, Rosamund Pike, Jacob Elordi, Richard E.Grant and Cary Mulligan.

It took a few hours for my thoughts to settle about this movie. It’s a mystery drama, a sort of Talented Mr Gatsby. It’s never boring, looks lush, is provocative and has great performances, Rosamund Pike especially. BUT. I don’t think it quite hangs together and I ultimately felt a bit unsatisfied with it. Seems a bit empty. Won't forget it anyway.

The Holdovers

I was certainly ready for this after the lengthy and flashy movies above. The always watchable Paul Giamatti stars in ‘The Holdovers’ by Alexander Payne about a teacher who has to spend Christmas with an unruly student Angus (Dominic Sessa) and school cook Mary (Da’Vine Joy Randolph).

Giamatti is a curmudgeonly unloved teacher, contracted and closed in on himself. Mary is nursing her own grief after the loss of her son, whilst Angus is obviously smart but confrontational.

I’d describe this move as quite warm, with undertones of sadness. Just when you think it might veer towards something more schmaltzy, it delivers a harder tone that you mightn’t have expected. As Christmas movies go, it’s not so much about surrounding yourself with loved ones, but about taking comfort and solace from where you find yourself.

I really liked Randolphs world weary performance, forced to confront her pain on a daily basis. The script has moments of humour and it’s quite a poignant movie that was perfect holiday viewing for me anyway.

After Hours

This is the story of two childhood friends, who we first meet in South Korea around the early noughties, before life interrupts and one of them emigrates to the US. The story then moves forward twelve years later, the two now living separate lives in their twenties but reconnecting. The final part of the movie finds them meeting in modern day New York, twelve years on.

If it sounds simple, that’s because it is and that’s where the beauty of it lies. It’s a fragile story, beautifully acted and wonderfully understated. It’s a story of how we change of course, but also about how at our core, our being, we remain the same.

Na-Young (Nora) easily falls into her Korean identity, rediscovering something as she does so. But she also has a husband and a successful life in America. Hae-Sung (Arthur) has different expectations from his childhood friend, as does the viewer. He’s like an old school romantic, and has such a quiet dignity about him.

There’s so much in the delicate depth in the interplay between the two main characters, quiet glimpses and silences. What I wanted for the characters changes over the course of the film, and that’s down to the deft skill of the director. There’s so much subtlety in this movie, from the directing to the performances. It’s also about immigration and the South Korean concept of ‘in-yun’ - the belief that the interactions we have in this life are influenced by the connections we had with people in our ‘past lives’, a message which underpins the movie.

It put me in mind of movies such as ‘Before sunrise/sunset/midnight’ by Richard Linklater. Fate, the twisting paths our lives take, the connections we have with people that overcome time and place. Maybe we end up where we are supposed to be, because it was always meant to be that way. How much control do we have over our lives? We only think we are making decisions.

Loved this movie, and though it won’t trouble the Oscars, it’s my favourite from the recents that I’ve watched. It’ll linger with me for a while.

Retreat

I can’t finish without mentioning another experience I had over the festive period. The days between Stephens day and New Years are often lazy and wonderfully indulgent, but this year I decided I wanted to do something different so I sat a five day silent meditation retreat.

There’s not much happening outside, so I found it easy to lock myself away. The tv goes off, phone goes on silent, fridge gets stocked. I quietly power down.

It’s all hosted online so it’s a combination of silent and guided meditations, Q&A’s and talks. As it was running US mountain time, I adjusted my schedule so I was starting at 6AM and finishing at 9PM. I did of course take plenty of breaks and made sure I got outside every day.

It was hosted by Simply Always Awake and I found it to an informative, invigorating and refreshing five days. Retreats aren’t always easy - you find yourself in places you might usually avoid. I’m ok with this, as I have the space and time to approach them. This is why I attend retreats - it’s work. It’s not about resting in blissful states for me - those are just experiences. I attend retreats to restore balance, to return home again.

This is very much my own personal indulgence and I’m very lucky to have the time to sit a retreat. I hope to sit more going forward, hopefully in person.

An obligatory picture of snowdrops, peeking their head up to remind us change is coming. Impermanence is our natural state. Nothing is forever. Winter will end, Spring will come. And on it goes.

So there you have it, a length round up of my January. Currently laid up with a knee injury, so I’ve had plenty of time on my hands. There’s so much available to watch - I could fill another blog post with movies/tv shows I abandoned.

In my yearly round up I didn’t thank you all for subscribing. It means a lot that people take the time to read my posts and contact me, so my deepest gratitude to you.

May you be happy, may you be well, may you be free from suffering.